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EPISODES ON CHANNEL 5 (UK) - WEEK 18

106 * 107 * 108 * 109 * 110


EPISODE 106

Broadcast on Channel 5 (UK) 28 July 1997 Mon 11:25 p.m. Geoff interrupts Caroline's visit to Jim.

Meg ~ Elspeth Ballantyne
Lizzie ~ Sheila Florance
Erica ~ Patsy King
Bea ~ Val Lehman
Jim ~ Gerard Maguire
Paul ~ George Mallaby
Doreen ~ Colette Mann
Pat ~ Monica Maughan
Vera ~ Fiona Spence
Sharon ~ Margot Knight
Judy ~ Betty Bobbitt
Caroline ~ Rosalind Speirs
Leila ~ Penny Ramsay
Geoff ~ Ray Meagher
Michael ~ Peter Ford
Ken ~ Tom Oliver
Defence ~ Denzil Howson
Magistrate ~ Don Smibert
Andrew O'Connell ~ Simon Reichelt
Mighty Mouse ~ Jentah Snedden

  • Written by Denise Morgan
  • Directed by Leigh Spence
  • Jim's phone number (just in case anyone is thinking of phoning him) is 851126, and he's in room 105.

    Judy's story is possibly influenced by the plot of Lilian Helman's play "The Children's Hour" (filmed as "The Loudest Whisper")

    Lizzie puts on the denims again at Wentworth and is welcomed back in the rec room by Doreen and Bea. Geoff Butler is waiting for Meg as she leaves work: she tells him she isn't going to change her testimony. Jim phones Leila from his hotel room to let her know where he is . When she puts the phone down, she is alarmed to find Geoff Butler in the house and phones Jim back immediately to warn him, but he has left to see Caroline at the halfway house. Judy tells Doreen about her life in a small town in America, and how her father rejected her and her lover committed suicide when her lesbianism was made public. Doreen finds a bedraggled spaniel in the garden and smuggles it inside, but they are unable to hide it from Vera, who finds it in the laundry and takes it to Erica. Pat is brought to visit Pat when he is found and she tries to convince Matthew not to run away from the children's home again, and seeing him again seems to make up her mind to go ahead with the appeal. Caroline is waiting for Jim in his hotel room when he gets back from work, but they have hardly started to explore each other's tonsils when Geoff arrives, having followed Jim from work. He tells Jim that the charge of recruiting mercenaries has been dropped, so he only faces trial for the assault on Meg. Doreen and Sharon squabble over who will smuggle the dog outside after Lizzie has found it outside Erica's office: Vera confiscates the dog for a second time. Michael comes to see Jim at work to offer him money to stop seeing Caroline. The women see Vera taking the dog to the RSPCA and Lizzie shouts "Murderer", which seems to make Vera reconsider the dog's fate. Ken and Bea discuss the drama group: he tells her about his family and claims not to have seen his wife for 20 years. Meg gives evidence at Geoff's trial and Jim supports her story. In Geoff's own evidence he hints that Jim only gave evidence out of envy of his involvement with Army life. The drama group improvises a scene of Vera finding the dog (played by Mouse ), but it degenerates into a scrap between Sharon and Doreen, so Vera puts a stop to it. Sharon runs to Judy, but finds she is feeling unwell again. Judy tells Sharon she'll have to look out for herself in future, as she fears she has heart problems, just like her mother who died of a heart attack at 48. Meg catches Vera packing up some cans of dog food to take home and is surprised that Vera changed her mind about taking the dog to the RSPCA. Geoff Butler gets off with a good behaviour bond, but is very displeased with Jim because he can't now leave the country to take up the job as a mercenary. Michael Simpson has also been following Jim, and approaches Geoff outside the courtroom to suggest they join forces against Jim.

    EPISODE 107

    Broadcast on Channel 5 (UK) 29 July 1997 Tue 11:30 p.m. Prison drama

    Meg ~ Elspeth Ballantyne
    Lizzie ~ Sheila Florance
    Erica ~ Patsy King
    Bea ~ Val Lehman
    Jim ~ Gerard Maguire
    Paul ~ George Mallaby
    Doreen ~ Colette Mann
    Pat ~ Monica Maughan
    Vera ~ Fiona Spence
    Sharon ~ Margot Knight
    Judy ~ Betty Bobbitt
    Caroline ~ Rosalind Speirs
    Leila ~ Penny Ramsay
    Geoff ~ Ray Meagher
    Michael ~ Peter Ford
    Greg ~ Barry Quin
    UNCREDITED
    Sally ~ Nanette Wallace
    Sister ~ Wendy Damien
    Vera's neighbour ~ Esme Melville
    OTHER CHARACTERS
    The dog's real owner

  • Written by Sheila Sibley
  • Directed by Rod Hardy
  • Michael tells Geoff why he has a grudge against Jim and offers him $2,000 if he can get Caroline to come back to him. Geoff suggests the only way is to get Jim and Leila back together. Doreen apologises to Bea for spoiling the drama group and Bea's chances of seeing Ken again. Leila phones Meg at Wentworth to find out about Geoff's trial and invites her to dinner, promising not to mention Jim. When Leila puts the phone down she gets a heavy breather call, which is obviously from Geoff (though Leila appears not to recognise his voice, so maybe it was meant to be Michael Simpson?). Paul untypically agrees with Vera that the women aren't ready to have the drama group reintroduced, but Erica wants it to continue, as she's worried about Wentworth's record on rehabilitation. Bea agrees to try to get the women to make the drama group work: Erica tells her to have "a long, hard talk" with her "thespian friends". Meg assures Lizzie that a member of staff has given the dog a good home, but won't say who it is. Judy rushes to save Sharon when she sees Bea approaching her in the garden, but she collapses again. Vera takes her new dog for a walk, but a neighbour tells her she can hear the dog whining when it's locked in all day and points out that pets are not allowed in the flats. Paul warns Jim that his affair with Caroline could get Paul himself into trouble. Leila's sleep is disturbed by a prowler outside the house. Meg is alarmed to find Geoff waiting for her outside work. Greg visits Wentworth: he's returning to sell up the practice and put in a good word for Pat O'Connell, and he has also brought his wedding photos to show Erica. Erica asks him to talk to Judy and get her to go for tests. Lizzie trie sto comfort Sharon and allay her worries about Judy. Jim finds Leila waiting for him in his hotel room, but Caroline turns up straight away before Leila can explain properly what is worrying her. Judy tells Greg she won't go for tests as her mother died during cardiac surgery. Greg tells Sharon that only she can persuade Judy to go for tests. Lizzie gives Vera a little coat for the dog embroidered with the name "Chips" , because as Lizzie explains "Chips goes with Vinegar". Vera is just about to put the dog's coat on during a walk in the park, when the dog's real owner rushes up to reclaim it. Meg goes to a restaurant with Greg and sees Geoff over at the bar, haloed in "sinister" red light . After she gets another silent phone call late at night, Leila is about to phone the police but her window is smashed when someone throws a brick through it .

    EPISODE 108

    Broadcast on Channel 5 (UK) 30 July 1997 Wed 11:30 p.m. Leila calls the police about the brick through the window, and Jim comes under suspicion.

    Meg ~ Elspeth Ballantyne
    Lizzie ~ Sheila Florance
    Erica ~ Patsy King
    Bea ~ Val Lehman
    Jim ~ Gerard Maguire
    Paul ~ George Mallaby
    Doreen ~ Colette Mann
    Pat ~ Monica Maughan
    Vera ~ Fiona Spence
    Sharon ~ Margot Knight
    Judy ~ Betty Bobbitt
    Caroline ~ Rosalind Speirs
    Leila ~ Penny Ramsay
    Geoff ~ Ray Meagher
    Michael ~ Peter Ford
    Greg ~ Barry Quin
    Ken Pearce ~ Tom Oliver
    Debbie Pearce ~ Dina Mann
    Phyllis ~ Reylene Pearce
    Mouse ~ Jentah Sneddan
    UNCREDITED
    Officer Phillip ~ Lise Rodgers
    Wendy ~ Helen Noonan
    OTHER CHARACTERS
    Two uniformed police
    Halfway house resident (Betty Doran?)

  • Written by Dave Worthington
  • Directed by Rod Hardy
  • Leila tells the police of her suspicion that Geoff is behind the terror campaign against her. Judy insists on returning to work and refuses to see a doctor, so Erica makes her sign an indemnity stating that she has refused treatment and orders her not to leave her cell during work periods. When the police visit Jim, they at first think he might have been responsible for throwing the brick, but they also ask him about Geoff - Jim tells them he has no idea where Geoff is. Meg says that it couldn't have been Geoff Butler as she and Greg saw him in a bar at the time the attack occurred. Ken wants the drama group to rehearse "A Midsummer Night's Dream" (no shortage of likely candidates for the part of Bottom). Erica is a little dubious that he will be able to enthuse the women with Shakespeare. Leila comes to see Jim at work, much to his displeasure, and he tells her that Geoff has an alibi for last night. She suggests it could have been Caroline's husband instead. Erica has to reprimand Jim for overreacting when he brings Doreen in front of her for a remark she made about the police catching up with him. Leila arrives home to find HELLO LEILA spray painted on her lounge doors in red . Lizzie overhears Judy and Sharon arguing and cooks up a plan to convince Judy to go ahead with the tests. Michael Simpson is annoyed with Geoff for forcing him to throw the brick through Leila's window, but Geoff insists he needed to establish an alibi as he'd be the main suspect. During the play reading, Lizzie fakes a heart attack in front of Judy in the rec room. Caroline locks herself out of the halfway house investigating a noise outside and has to knock on the door to be let back in, but she doesn't see Geoff skulking in the garden. When Greg comes to see Pat, Jim asks him to have a word with Lizzie to see if she is faking or not. Greg gives Lizzie an hour for her scheme to work before he tells Erica she isn't really sick. Caroline tells Jim about the prowler in the garden, and they both agree it must have been Michael. After talking to Greg, Judy changes her mind in time and decides to go for the tests. Bea is outraged that Lizzie has put them through the worry for the sake of "that fat cow". Greg fails to raise Pat's spirits about her appeal and she still feels she has no chance. Jim decides to phone Michael Simpson to tell him to back off and threatens to come round and "give him a lesson in unarmed combat". Geoff suggests to Michael that they should plant drugs on Jim and report him to the police. Vera begins to suspect that something is going on between Bea and Ken. However, Bea is about to see something she doesn't like: Ken is met at the prison gates by a young blonde . Michael agrees to deliver the parcel supposedly containing drugs to Jim's hotel, but he doesn't know that Geoff is building a bomb in a cigar box to go inside the parcel .

    EPISODE 109

    Broadcast on Channel 5 (UK) 31 July 1997 Thu 11:40 p.m. Carmel tries to allay Pat's fears.

    Meg ~ Elspeth Ballantyne
    Lizzie ~ Sheila Florance
    Erica ~ Patsy King
    Bea ~ Val Lehman
    Jim ~ Gerard Maguire
    Paul ~ George Mallaby
    Doreen ~ Colette Mann
    Pat ~ Monica Maughan
    Vera ~ Fiona Spence
    Sharon ~ Margot Knight
    Judy ~ Betty Bobbitt
    Caroline ~ Rosalind Speirs
    Ken ~ Tom Oliver
    Leila ~ Penny Ramsay
    Michael ~ Peter Ford
    Geoff ~ Ray Meagher
    Carmel Saunders ~ Cornelia Francis
    Greg ~ Barry Quin
    Det Sgt Parsons ~ Kevin Summers
    Nicholas Fletcher ~ Joshua Pascoe
    Matthew Fletcher ~ Damon Pascoe
    UNCREDITED
    Julie (Leila's neighbour) ~ Gael Andrews
    Hotel Receptionist ~ Bill Bennett
    OTHER CHARACTERS
    Louise (halfway house resident)

  • Written by Marcus Cooney
  • Directed by Marcus Cole
  • In both this and the next episode Barry Quin's name is spelt "Quinn" in the credits.

    Thanks to Marie Grahn correcting the name of Leila's neighbour, which I thought was "Sue" for some reason.

    Pat tries to silence Doreen when she tactlessly mentions Ken in front of Bea, but not in time to prevent Bea blowing up and saying she doesn't care what Ken does. Jim phones Leila when he's on night duty and finds out about the painted message. Judy tells Sharon she wasn't fooled by Lizzie's act, but admits it made her think. Erica calls on Leila on her way to work and finds out that Jim isn't living at home any more. Jim also calls in on his way back from work and Erica has to make an embarased retreat. After she leaves, Jim and Leila have a huge argument which is only stopped when they both notice the children silently watching from the corridor outside. Bea snaps when Sharon mentions the drama group and issues a general warning that the subject is out of bounds. Carmel goes over the appeals procedure with Pat. The police call at the hotel and ask Jim about the painted message implying that the peron responsible might either be Jim himself or Michael Simpson. Caroline gets an anonymous note at the halfway house, accusing her of being a "WHORE" . Carmel asks Paul to get Pat's kids in for a visit to give her a more positive attitude before she goes for her appeal. Jim visits Caroline at the halfway house to tell her about Leila's mystery visitor and Caroline shows him the note she got. Jim dismisses the idea that either Geoff or Michael is responsible for the terror campaign. Andrew and Emma are brought to visit Pat. Sharon moans to Judy about Bea's bad-tempered attitude. The women continue with their rehearsals half heartedly under Bea's scorn for the proceedings. Paul is concerned that Bea's loss of interest will put an end to the drama group. Vera has to admit to Meg that she no longer has the dog and tries to pretend she doesn't care. The police call on Michael at home and while Geoff hides in another room he convinces them that he isn't interested in having Caroline back. Paul gets nowhere getting the truth out of Bea about why she has suddenly taken against the drama group. Geoff phones Wentworth under an assumed name and finds out from Vera that Jim will be working late, so he tells Michael it will be safe for him to deliver the parcel. However, Erica notices Jim being unreasonably harsh to the women and sends him home early for a rest. Paul finds out from Doreen the real reason why Bea has lost interest in the drama group: he thanks her and says he will sort it out. Michael leaves the parcel at the hotel reception desk when the man on the desk says that Jim has left strict instructions not to be disturbed. After Michael leaves, the manager puts the parcel under the desk rather than delivering it straight away. Paul gets Bea and Ken together and leaves them alone together in his office, having primed Ken to casually drop the information that it was his daughter Bea saw. (oddly, Bea does not react at all to the strange coincidence of Ken's daughter being called Debbie...) As Pat goes to her appeal, she remembers her own words to David at his appeal. Leila takes the boys to Jim's hotel for a surprise visit, and the manager gives her the parcel to take upstairs . The boys play tug of war with the parcel in the corridor right outside Jim's room , and the bomb explodes blowing the door off its hinges .

    EPISODE 110

    Broadcast on Channel 5 (UK) 01 August 1997 Fri 11:35 p.m. Jim learns that both his children are dead.

    Meg ~ Elspeth Ballantyne
    Lizzie ~ Sheila Florance
    Erica ~ Patsy King
    Bea ~ Val Lehman
    Jim ~ Gerard Maguire
    Paul ~ George Mallaby
    Doreen ~ Colette Mann
    Pat ~ Monica Maughan
    Vera ~ Fiona Spence
    Sharon ~ Margot Knight
    Judy ~ Betty Bobbitt
    Caroline ~ Rosalind Speirs
    Ken ~ Tom Oliver
    Michael ~ Peter Ford
    Geoff ~ Ray Meagher
    Det Sgt Parsons ~ Kevin Summers
    Carmel Saunders ~ Cornelia Francis
    Greg ~ Barry Quin
    Debbie Pearce ~ Dina Mann
    Judge ~ Kevin Colebrook
    Clerk of Court ~ Derek Manley
    UNCREDITED
    Andrew and Emma O'Connell
    The surgeon who tells Jim of Leila's death

  • Written by Ian Bradley & David Worthington
  • Directed by Marcus Cole
  • The mirror in Ken's house is identical to the one previously seen in Pat's mother's house .

    Jim is not hurt, but the police tell him that Leila has been taken to hospital and the boys were killed outright. Michael wants to make sure the job is done before he will pay Geoff, but Geoff demands to be driven straight to the bank. Pat's solicitor argues before the appeal judges that there was a miscarriage of justice because of the publicity surrounding her at the time of the original trial. Erica warns Ken that he's playing with fire if he's making deals with Bea. The women hear about Jim's family on the radio news and they are upset at the thought of the deaths of the children. Jim signs a release for Leila to be given a life saving operation. Greg gives character evidence for Pat at her appeal. Geoff is satisfied to hear the description of the police suspect on the car radio while Michael is inside the bank, but is annoyed to hear that it was not Jim who died. He keeps this fact from Michael and asks to be driven to a friend's house. When they arrive he pulls a gun on Michael and makes him go inside the house with him. Caroline arrives at the hospital to see how Jim is: in his grief he blames Caroline for what has happened, and at that moment the surgeon arrives to break the bad news of Leila's death. During her examination of Pat, Carmel points out to the appeal judges that Pat is still in prison for abetting, whereas her husband who actually committed the crime has been released on parole. Bea tells Lizzie the true identity of Ken's mystery blonde. Ken is seen at home objecting to the bad company his daughter is keeping, as he knows the friend she is going out with is a prostitute. Pat's sentence is reduced to six months. Judy embroiders a panel for Sharon as something to remember her by in case she has to go into hospital when the results of her tests are known. Vera gloatingly tells Bea that the Governor's orders are that no prisoner will be left alone with Ken. Debbie stays out all night and when she gets home seems to have acquired a wad of banknotes, which she at first claims she won betting on the horses. Ken tells her he may have to send her back to live with her mother, but she threatens that if he throws her out, she'll go to live with her prostitute friend. Geoff comes to the halfway house to try to find out from Caroline where Jim is. Vera refuses to relieve Meg of her guard duty in the laundry so she can say goodbye to Greg, so Meg goes anyway, leaving the coast clear for Bea to sneak into the rec room and see Ken. Bea remarks that a day inside Wentworth would cure Debbie of her silly ideas, which gives Ken the idea of asking Erica for permission for Debbie to come on a one-day visit. Lizzie alerts Bea by shouting "Hello Vera" just in time for Bea to hide in the store room. Greg tells Judy the results of her tests: she will need an operation to have a pacemaker fitted. Greg finds Jim alone in his house and gives him a couple of sleeping pills, which Jim washes down with whisky. Meg tells Pat her parole has come through and she is released. Paul has brought her children to meet her outside the gates. Jim is already out cold when Geoff lets himself into the house to offer his "help".

    Storyliners: Dave Worthington, Margaret McClusky
    Script Editors: Ian Smith (106)-(107); Patrick Amer (108); Ian Smith (109); Patrick Amer (110)


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    Updated ~ 23 August 2001